Operation Vanilla Fudge

Operation Vanilla Fudge was a US Army military operation which was launched in 1968 during the Vietnam War.

During the Tet Offensive, the NVA and their local Viet Cong allies launched several cross-border attacks from Cambodia into South Vietnam. In the aftermath of the offensive's failure in February 1968, the MACV decided to launch a sweep of the Song Be valley region and clear out the Viet Cong and North Vietnamese forces based there. The Viet Cong and the US Army were the main belligerents, and the Marines had helicopter support during their operations.

The US Army was initially forced back, losing hundreds of soldiers and several helicopters in a series of failed assaults on the VC positions. After a lull in the battle, the US Army launched a counterattack against the Viet Cong. They recaptured several of their lost positions, and the Viet Cong were unable to take Hill 79 from the Americans, suffering heavy losses in the process. The Americans were ultimately victorious, although they had suffered a greater number of casualties than the communists, who were able to escape back into Cambodia.